PORT BYRON, IL - Ms. Soike's 5th grade classroom at Riverdale Elementary School in Port Byron was the winner of the school's contest to collect bears for the Nick Teddy Foundation's Teddy Bear Drive. Her students gathered 38 of 100 bears netted for the effort at the school.
The winning classroom was rewarded with a pizza party at the school on Friday, October 4. Drive coordinator Jamie Rice Fritch commented, "It is so wonderful to see the kids getting involved in such a great cause and giving back to the community. I feel it is very important for the kids of our future to contribute and be hands on with such events."
Overall, nearly 150 teddy bears were collected in the month of August. Several area businesses, libraries, and YMCA's also accepted bears during the drive.
Bears will be donated to pediatric patients at Children's Hospital of Illinois in Peoria, IL, http://
www.childrenshospitalofillinois.org and to grieving and traumatized children served by Rick's House of Hope in Davenport, IA. http://rhoh.org
More information, can be found online at: http://www.NickTeddy.org, on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/NickTeddyOrg); on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/NickTeddyOrg).
Photos and interviews are available for Teddy Bear Drive wrap up stories.
Executive Director/Contact: Holly Larson/309-798-3081 / foundation@nickteddy.org
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